Heb 11:4-6 Faith like Abel and Enoch
Notes
Transcript
Let’s imagine a hypothetical scenario. Our country is at war and independent of age, we all have to fight an enemy invasion. The fight is certain and inevitable. In order to prepare for such a situation the government is providing a one-day training. You have to choose one option between two instructors. One instructor is an expert scholar in war, he wrote several books on tactics and wars, however, he has no military experience and no experience in being in any type of battle or survival situation. The other option is an unknown person, who has no specific expertise, but fought in a real battle and experienced an enemy invasion in the middle of a war.
In this hypothetical scenario, it is more likely that we would choose to hear some practical instructions and insight from the unknown person. Not because he has the expertise, can give all the right definitions and theories, or can use all the correct lingo, but because this unknown person is a living example, someone that you will want to imitate because he lived it out.
In the same manner, the Scripture verses we are going to study today point to the living examples that we should imitate and follow because they are practical examples of faith, rather than to the proof of faith or just faith as a concept. Even though biblical faith is based on reality and facts, it needs to be lived out.
A couple of weeks ago we were studying the first 3 verses of chapter 11 and we were reminded that faith is the assurance or substance of things hoped for, and the conviction or evidence of things not seen. For by it, the people of old received their commendation. We could say that faith is being sure of God’s promises, that they are worth putting our hope in. It is being sure that the invisible God created the universe.
I don’t know if you noticed but we didn’t really get into v2 last time. The reason we didn’t is because it is the connection to the next verses. So let’s start with v2.
2 For by it the people of old received their commendation.
When it says for by it, the context of the passage makes it clear that the “it” is faith. So we could say by this kind of faith the people of old gained approval, were attested by God, or pleased God. That means that the lives of the Old Testament saints are illustrations of this kind of faith. This is important to recognize, especially as you study the Old Testament. These men and women aren’t perfect, but in their imperfections provided examples of pleasing faith.
They don’t prove the kind of faith that is defined in v1, they illustrate it. It is interesting that the author of Hebrews does not try to prove that this is what faith is at all. All of this long catalog of faithful examples exposes v2 that they received their commendation from God. Namely, the reward to hear from God well done good and faithful servant.
To this point in Hebrews, the author spends his time providing his arguments from an intellectual and interpretation standpoint. Yet when he comes to talk of faith, he deviates from this and instead uses examples of those whom God shared with us in the Old Testament. The change should not go unnoticed. It will actually be less impactful if he proves what faith is, but doesn’t give examples. In the same manner, if I give you all the reasons to trust and believe in Jesus and ask you to live out this faith, but my life is not an example, then all the proof and arguments are pointless. In the same way for you, if you share your faith but don’t live out your faith, your words will be discredited by your actions.
Biblical faith is based on evidence, but it cannot stay in concept only, it has to be lived out. Believing and trusting in Jesus is not just a mental work, it is not something that you only confess with your lips. Rom 10 says that If you confess with your mouth and believe in your heart. If you believe in your heart that then your life should be a living demonstration of what you say you believe.
When we share our faith we also should be honest and vulnerable to confess that we are not perfect either, we need Jesus in the same manner that everyone else does. We noticed this last week with our documentary. While Jesus was perfect, His actions were what the Gen Z commented on most often. This is what got their attention and what caused them to listen to His words. We also say this in action when the actor who plays Jesus sat down to chat with them. He showed a very real example of how he lived his faith. It was this example that likely cause the young man to really listen to his questions.
No, we are not going to do it perfectly, we need Jesus’ help all the way. We need to remember that we are ambassadors of Christ, we are representing Christ to those around us, and how we live out our faith is going to have a positive or negative impact on those around us.
I hope you enjoyed the special time last Sunday. I hope your eyes were open to the brokenness of those outside the church. We are all broken people, the only difference between you and those outside is that we have Jesus in our hearts. We have hope, life, and peace with God because of Jesus. It is Jesus in you that is the light for this broken world. You might be the only glimpse of light that someone might have of Jesus. We are His ambassadors. We are representing Christ to a dying world. Let’s not miss any opportunities, but pray that God will give us more and more opportunities, and then pray that God will give us the boldness to speak in love.
Furthermore, we are in need of encouragement and endurance. We are encouraged when we see or hear of other believers living out this biblical faith. I hope you find these next few sermons encouraging so you will find the strength to endure as the author of Hebrews intended.
4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.
What people of old did the writer of Hebrews start with? Abel, REALLY? Why Abel? The author of Hebrews takes Genesis as the word of God and a historical account of creation and the first person that receives God’s commendation is Abel.
Gen 4 records the story of Cain and Abel, right after man’s fall in Gen 3. Adam and Eve conceive a son, Cain, and then Abel. Then Cain and Abel offered sacrifices to the Lord, but the Lord had no regard for Cain’s offering, but God had regard for Abel’s offering. We know that the distinction between the offerings was not in the offerings in and of themselves but in their heart as they offered the sacrifice. Here in Hebrews, it makes it very clear that the difference was that Abel offered by faith.
Here we should pause and consider a short but important application for us. If God cared more about the heart than the offering from the beginning… should we expect any different today?
That means you can give all your possessions to the Lord. You can serve your whole life, you can help thousands of people, and if your heart is not in the right place God will have no regard for your offering. I rarely will talk about giving your tithes or offerings to the Lord, but here we see a clear message from God. If you give with a resentful heart, it is better not to give. God looks at and cares for your heart not what you can give. God owns it all, He doesn’t need you. God will have delight if your giving is out of a grateful and joyful heart because you know God has given you everything you have one outcome is that He will provide all you need for you tomorrow. Therefore, pay attention to your heart when you give monetarily or in time and effort. He asks you to do so out of love for Him, not out of expectation, loyalty or fear.
I believe that this is the kind of heart that Abel had when he offered the sacrifice. That is why his sacrifice was more acceptable sacrifice than Cain. If you want to be accepted by God you have to have biblical solid faith. In fact v6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God.
It is because of his faith that Abel was commended by God as righteous. We might say wait a minute in Genesis it doesn’t say anything about God commending Abel. The author answers that objection by saying that God commended Abel by accepting or having regard for Abel’s gift.
Then in the last section of v4, it says “And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.” We need to remember Abel was faithful and had a God-pleasing faith but had a violent death. He was brutally murdered by his own brother. It must have been so distressing for Abel as he was attacked by his own brother. Let’s remember that he wasn’t shot to death, the Genesis account doesn’t give specific details on how but only says “that while they were in the field Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.”
Let’s think for a moment, Cain might have used his hands or what he could find maybe a rock or a stick. Can you imagine being in Abel’s shoes? What do you do? How do you react to your older brother as he is in a rage intending to kill you with his hands? I can only imagine Abel crying out to God, and maybe that made Cain even angrier and more violent against him.
Let’s take a moment to look at this negative or non-example of faith. Cain in many ways represents the believer who faithfully attends church and gives his tithe, and likely offerings regularly. So, when Cain finds out that God doesn’t accept his offering, rather than being righteous…he falls into self-righteousness. “How dare God act in this way? I work hard for Him and look what I got, God is unjust look at my stupid little brother and God shows favor to Him instead of me. I work hard for God and I didn’t receive what I deserve or what I need” In a sense in this scenario we are saying that we are more righteous than others and that we know better than God. There is anger against God, against others, but never an introspective look at the heart and repentance. If you ever come to a place like that in your heart, be quick to repent and ask for Jesus’ help.
But back to our positive example of Abel…Abel was faithful to God, he had faith and trust in God. God was pleased with him, but even then he had a terrible death.
Commentators are divided over the meaning of the phrase “he still speaks.” It could be taken to refer to his blood speaking as the voice of a martyr crying out for justice. Another option is that he still speaks concerning his faith in the record of Scripture. This statement should be compared with Heb 12:24, where we are told the blood of Jesus speaks better than the blood of Abel. Lane pointed out that it is by his faith and not his blood that Abel speaks. The allusion is to Gen 4:4 where God approves of his sacrifice. That he “still” speaks means right up to the time of writing, and by implication, to the present time.
My take is that it means all of this, that his blood was crying out for justice because in Gen 4:10 God says “The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground” And it also means that his faith still speaks as an example for us to follow. Abel trusted God even in the worst possible situation. He cried out to God, and even though he died, he still speaks to us because of his unwavering faith in God. It is because of his faith that God commanded and was pleased with Abel.
Therefore, work to have faith like Abel and as you do God will not only care for you, but He will be with you even to the end of the ages. It doesn’t mean that you won’t have any difficulties and sufferings in this life, but it means God will be your helper during these times of need. He will be your shepherd who will lead you in this life and He will be your eternal reward and peace.
If we had only Abel as an example it would have been enough, but the author doesn’t stop here he continues encouraging us by turning to Enoch in v 5.
5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God.
First, who was Enoch?
The second example of faith is Enoch. All the Hebrew Bible has to say of him is that he was born to Jared when the latter was 162 years old, and then, that “when Enoch had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after the birth of Methuselah three hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.44 Thus all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him” (Gen. 5:18, 21–24).
Just reading the Genesis account in passing it might not come to your attention that Enoch didn’t die. When reading through the genealogy in Genesis it might not appear as significant, but the contrast between how life is recorded versus the others is quite significant. The genealogy in this section is following a significant repeated formulation saying: “so and so lived for so many years before he fathered so and so, then lived for so many years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of so and so were this many and he died.
Therefore, in Genesis when it comes to Enoch it follows the same pattern of how many years he lived before his first son and so forth. However, there are two distinctions within the account of Enoch. It says that he walked with God and when it should have said “and he died” instead it says “and he was not for God took him”. Now in Hebrews, it makes it clear that this means that Enoch didn’t died.
There are only two persons that Scripture tells us that didn’t see death. Does anyone remember the second?.... Yes, Elijah and Enoch… didn’t die rather God took them. It is interesting that in the book of Revelation there are two witnesses that suddenly appear on the scene witnessing and even though people try to kill them, they will not be able to do so. Rather only after the appointed time God has for them that they are able to kill them. Some believe, including me, that it is possible that these two witnesses in Revelation are Enoch and Elijah because, in all of the history of mankind, these two men were the only ones who didn’t die rather God took them.
It is obvious that we don’t fully know what God’s plan is for them, nor is it for us to know, rather our job is to be obedient and follow God by faith. That is the point the author of Hebrews brings from the life of Enoch, that by faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death.
When we look at this faithful hall of fame it might seem strange that the author of Hebrews picks up Enoch as an example of man of faith. It only says that he walked with God. But, this phrase “walk with God” means a lot more than just the idea of physically walking with someone. It meant he walked humbly with God, he practiced justice and lovingkindness. It meant he had a close relationship with God, he loved God and follow Him constantly and faithfully.
Remember Abel was an example of faith, in the same manner that Enoch is an example of faith. Both were faithful. One died a horrible death, the other didn’t experience death at all. The end result of our lives doesn’t depend on our faith or our faithfulness, but it depends on what plans God has specifically for us. Most people would like to end like Enoch or even be satisfied with a “die in my sleep moment” and not like Abel.
We might wrongly think that Enoch had more faith than Abel. Why might we think so? Because we easily make the direct correlation between blessings and faithfulness, the book of Job shows that faithfulness not necessarily means easy and blessings, but it might mean suffering and distress.
In the case of Abel and Enoch. I think that it is more likely that Abel had more faith than Enoch because Abel had to endure much more. The bottom line is that God had a different plan for each of them, in the same manner, God has a specific plan for your life, your job is to be faithful and hold fast to Christ, and by faith Jesus will hold you fast to Him.
John 6:39-40 “39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Furthermore, don’t fall into the trap of comparing yourself with others. It doesn’t matter what God’s plan is for someone else. After Jesus was resurrected and appeared to the disciples Jesus was telling Peter his future and how he was going to die. Then Peter saw John and ask Jesus what about John’s future. Jesus responds in saying in John 21:21 “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!”
Talk about a tongue-lashing! Jesus told Peter it doesn’t matter what my plans are for this man, your job is to follow me. Likewise, you should pay attention to your walk in faith and obedience to Christ. We might look at others and think that’s not fair, why do they have it so easy while I have to go through fill in the blank. Not only are we shown and told to not go down this path this is coveting. Don’t do it. Focus on the blessing that Jesus never leaves you nor forsakes you, “The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged” says Deut 31:8
Yet, these are “just words”. Without faith you will find it hard to believe “those words”. We are told elsewhere in Scripture that we need to work our faith! So, if you are, or have been in a place where you find it hard to believe these words. Take a stand. Ask Him to help you work out your faith… to grow your faith just as we do our muscles when we work out. This is what transforms wishy-washy wishful thinking, into a strong biblical faith that is based on truth, reality, and the past faithfulness of God.
6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Apart from faith neither Enoch nor anyone else could have ever been pleasing to God. The faith which our author has in mind embraces belief in the invisible spiritual order, and belief in the promises of God which have not yet been fulfilled. Belief in the invisible spiritual order involves, first and foremost, belief in him who is “King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God” (1 Tim. 1:17); and belief in God carries with it the necessity to believe in his word. It is not belief in the existence of a God that is meant, but belief in the existence of the God who once declared his will to the fathers through the prophets and in these last days has spoken through his Son. Those who approach him can do so in full confidence that he exists, that his word is true, and that he will never put off or disappoint the person who sincerely seeks him. For all that he has revealed of himself, whether through the prophets or in his Son, assures us that he is altogether worthy of his people’s trust.
Where are you in your faith? It matters not where you are but whether you are walking out your faith as He asks. The next few weeks we will see more examples of faith, but my prayer is that these today, and those to come will give you a courage to continue working out your faith in righteousness before Him.